Saturday, October 27, 2007

Interesting Building


Toronto may be an uninteresting city. However, this building in Toronto is definitely interesting. It is at least interesting to the Feng Shui eyes.


JY

7 comments:

Donna said...

Hi Joseph,

This structure is the addition to the Royal Ontario Museum. Everytime I pass it I cringe to think what is happening to the existing business's across the street. Personally I think it is quite ugly and it doesn't fit in with the neigbourhood. Last weekend there was a major traffic jam because there was a huge broken water main and a few weeks ago there were fire trucks in front of it on both sides of the street that caused a big traffic jam. I don't know how you feel but I find it to be an eye sore.

Donna

Unknown said...

What is this building used for and what are the other buildings in the area used for? I can't imagine what it feels like to be inside! It makes me disoriented and confused just looking at the picture! The building next to it now doesn't even look like its sitting square! If the first rule of thumb of feng shui is that it has to fit the surroundings, I would have to say I don't think this is good feng shui at all! How is the business doing and how are the surrounding businesses doing? Was there any change after this building was built?

Unknown said...

For anyone interested in some info about the building, my daughter is an interior designer and she said this about the building:

"i've seen that building in a video we watched on the architect. i remember thinking that it was kinda ugly and probably really bad feng shui, but when you watch the video on how it was made and all the neat things that went into figuring out why it's the way it is and how everything works (like natural light, and working stairs and galleries into the form of the building) it was pretty cool."
" http://www.daniel-libeskind.com/projects/show-all/royal-ontario-museum/
this site doesn't talk a lot about some of the things we saw in the video (the video kinda followed them around through the whole design process from start to finish). what's really weird is how they came up with the shape! he took card board and cut notches into it then used that to just randomly create shapes. he'd come back and look at it later and decide something wasn't right and just move a piece or two around. then they tried to work around the shape they came up with to incorporate all the interior elements."

I thought it was interesting how they tried to make it natural for the flow inside, but didn't care much about making it natural to the flow outside.

Janean

Joseph Yu said...

Dear Donna, JC,

Thanks for your input.
It is a good property to study - whether the property receives and retains the appropriate qi for its purpose, and how does it affect its neighbors.

Those who live in Toronto can get some first hand information by interviewing the management and the neighbors.

JY

Päivi said...

Amazing. The building looks interesting but definitely not "good FS". I looked through the images of the architect's work. He is a menace to anything and everybody around the buildings he designs and also to those who have to spend time inside the buildings. What does it tell about the modern way of living when people choose such forms for their permanent environment? Also interesting that so many of the buildings are somehow war-related.

Päivi

CaitanyaRupa Navarathna said...

This building looks very aggressive. It's even taking a bite out of the building next to it.

Lot's of poison arrows in all directions.

Is it really hanging over the road?

That could really disturb anyone who has to drive under, walk by, be near or go into that building.

All those angles are unuseable space. If form follows function, what is the function of this building?

Unuseable space is fine if it is harmonious.

Do we really need to up the Sha Chi? Don't we really have enough of that flying around already?

It's sharp angles pointed outwards are like arrows telling everyone to look, but don't touch and stay away.

Kind of like a punk rocker building. Spiky haircut that?

All buildings talk to us. They communicate to us on a deeper level beyond words.

If this building would speak to your psyche, what would it say?

To me it would stay,
I'm better than everyone around me.
I don't have to conform.
I don't care who I make uncomfortable as long as I can make my statement.
I simply exist to shock and disturb those around me.
I'm so important that I have the right to take up even your space and intrude on you without your consent. (kind of pushy)

Freedom of speech (including the language of architecture) gives this museum the right to say what they think.

But it also gives me the right not to listen.

Just some thoughts
Caitanya Rupa

HellenisticAstrology said...

Hello Joseph,

I know this is an old blog post, but as a new student of classical feng shui, I found it astonishing in several ways. I know that what I have to say will be basic, but I may be adding a photo that was not on his page when this blog was written, and commented on. The one I’m referring to is the HKCMC—Hong Kong Creative Media Centre—the first structure I comment on.

But first, a quick thought—

The architecture wishes to be unique; to some people, this style is pleasing. I think this is a good example of the subjectivity of sight sheng, and how feng shui is not always what it seems. However, that is not to say that Libeskind’s buildings cohabitate with the surrounding structures in a harmonious manner. These buildings would be much better in museums—not used as museums.

Here is a page dedicated to the Hong Kong Creative Media Centre, which I found on the site of Daniel Libeskind, the architect responsible for these structures. I’m a bit shocked that this building will actually be posited in the middle of Hong Kong. I do not know what the buildings to the right of the proposed Media Centre are, but they don’t appear to have offended any of the buildings nearby.

Although I don’t know the direction from which the angle sha is thrown, and thus cannot be certain of the elemental quality of the offense, because the Media Centre is white, I would guess that the qi would be heavily influenced by metal. I have written, and re-written this paragraph numerous times, but after spending quite a bit of time observing the scenario, I think the circular arrangement of buildings to the right may be able to provide defense for themselves. The individual buildings are earth, but the collective complex is water, both by colour, and by silhouette. Because of this, and lack of the earth colour, the buildings must be more water (I think). Its relative size to the Hong Kong Creative Media Centre may help. I still am uncertain.

Master Yu, I'm sure you've been aware of this building for a while, so perhaps you have been able to find out what the facing/sitting of this proposed building will be. I would love to be able to study this building, and the way it will alter the long xue in this part of Hong Kong.

This did look like a lovely part of Hong Kong; even the streets are named for the dragon....

Here is a link to a Google Earth image of the area in which the Media Centre will be built. The building is not already there; I cut and pasted the computer generated image of the proposed building onto the Google Earth image, to make viewing it easier.

This building appears to try to destroy, replace, or alter all existing form in this part of Hong Kong. Does it wish to replace the mountain, and become a turtle? As a tiger, should she shoot killing breath at the dragon?

From Libeskind's page for The Ascent at Roebling's Bridge, I have found a building that is a great example of architecture that is offensive to heaven. Here is a link to one of the photographs from his page, the one I think best captures the building sending sha to heaven.


Perhaps this architect will be humanities demise.







That last sentence was my dry humor.